Creator and Redeemer.

May Lord our God, Bless you and all who are affiliated to you and your family.

Today before we think about Papa's love and his might and compassion towards us we shall make a vow towards ourselves, that we shall everyday say a decade of the rosary for all the souls in Purgatory. They are suffering and have no one to turn to for help. Lets at least recollect our fore fathers from both our parents, and commit ourselves to them in prayer.

Isaias Chapter 44

God's favour to his church. The folly of idolatry. The people shall be delivered from captivity.

44:21. Remember these things, O Jacob, and Israel, for thou art my servant. I have formed thee, thou art my servant, O Israel, forget me not.
Memento horum Iacob et Israhel quoniam servus meus es tu formavi te servus meus es tu Israhel non oblivisceris mei

44:22. I have blotted out thy iniquities as a cloud, and thy sins as a mist: return to me, for I have redeemed thee.
Delevi ut nubem iniquitates tuas et quasi nebulam peccata tua revertere ad me quoniam redemi te

44:23. Give praise, O ye heavens, for the Lord hath shown mercy: shout with joy, ye ends of the earth: ye mountains, resound with praise, thou, O forest, and every tree therein: for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and Israel shall be glorified.
Laudate caeli quoniam fecit Dominus iubilate extrema terrae resonate montes laudationem saltus et omne lignum eius quoniam redemit Dominus Iacob et Israhel gloriabitur

Simply envisage papa saying to us, my children I have saved you and bought you back you are free, but don’t forget me... all mighty God pleading to us after doing all that we ask to him and when we say thanks dad ( some forget to say so) and helping us and keeping us in warmth, says to us, Please don’t forget me.
What love! What love… what can replace his love, how can any poet or thinker find a word to define his love for us.



St. Sharbel Makhlouf *
(1828-1898)

Although this saint never traveled far from the Lebanese village of Beka-Kafra, where he was born, his influence has spread widely.

Joseph Zaroun Maklouf was raised by an uncle because his father, a mule driver, died when Joseph was only three. At the age of 23, Joseph joined the Monastery of St. Maron at Annaya, Lebanon, and took the name Sharbel in honor of a second-century martyr. He professed his final vows in 1853 and was ordained six years later.

Following the example of the fifth-century St. Maron, Sharbel lived as a hermit from 1875 until his death. His reputation for holiness prompted people to seek him to receive a blessing and to be remembered in his prayers. He followed a strict fast and was very devoted to the Blessed Sacrament. When his superiors occasionally asked him to administer the sacraments to nearby villages, Sharbel did so gladly.

He died in the late afternoon on Christmas Eve. Christians and non-Christians soon made his tomb a place of pilgrimage and of cures. Pope Paul VI beatified him in 1965 and canonized him in 1977.


Comment:

Pope John Paul II has often said that the Church has two lungs (East and West) and it must learn to breathe using both of them. Remembering saints like Sharbel helps the Church to appreciate both the diversity and unity present in the Catholic Church. Like all the saints, Sharbel points us to God and invites us to cooperate generously with God's grace, no matter what our situation in life may be. As our prayer life becomes deeper and more honest, we become more ready to make that generous response.

When Sharbel was canonized in 1977, Bishop Francis Zayek, head the U.S. Diocese of St. Maron, wrote a pamphlet entitled. A New Star of the East. Bishop Zayek wrote: St. Sharbel is called the second St. Anthony of the Desert, the Perfume of Lebanon, the first Confessor of the East to be raised to the Altars according to the actual procedure of the Catholic Church, the honor of our Aramaic Antiochian Church, and the model of spiritual values and renewal. Sharbel is like a Cedar of Lebanon standing in eternal prayer, on top of a mountain. The bishop noted that Sharbel's canonization plus other beatification cases prove that the Aramaic Maronite Antiochian Church is indeed a living branch of the Catholic Church and is intimately connected with the trunk, who is Christ, our Savior, the beginning and the end of all things.

Quote:

When Sharbel was canonized in 1977, Bishop Francis Zayek, head the U.S. Diocese of St. Maron, wrote a pamphlet entitled “A New Star of the East.” Bishop Zayek wrote: “St. Sharbel is called the second St. Anthony of the Desert, the Perfume of Lebanon, the first Confessor of the East to be raised to the Altars according to the actual procedure of the Catholic Church, the honor of our Aramaic Antiochian Church, and the model of spiritual values and renewal. Sharbel is like a Cedar of Lebanon standing in eternal prayer, on top of a mountain.”

The bishop noted that Sharbel's canonization plus other beatification cases prove “that the Aramaic Maronite Antiochian Church is indeed a living branch of the Catholic Church and is intimately connected with the trunk, who is Christ, our Savior, the beginning and the end of all things


(This entry appears in the print edition of Saint of the Day.)



*the above mentioned are added to this post from the mails recieved from - "AmericanCatholic. org" goodnews@americancatholic.org




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A good friend of mine, shreedhar (http://www.orkut.com/Profile.aspx?uid=4285683754807292048), used to pen me daily with the word of god for that day, at times from the reading of that day or otherwise. And what I used to like so much is the prayer and thought that he is used to add. With his permission I have added it below, so will do everyday possible.


Today's Scripture


"No man has ever seen, heard or even imagined the wonderful things God has in store for those who love the Lord." (I Corinthians 2:9)


Today's Word No matter where you are in life right now, God has much more in store for you. God wants to increase you–He wants to give you more wisdom so you can make better decisions. He wants you to prosper so that you can be a blessing to others. He wants to give you more money so you can be a blessing to others. Don't get stuck in that old rut where you just get up and go to work, come home, go to bed, and then do it all again. That's not all there is to life.

God has new frontiers for you to explore and higher mountains to climb!Proverbs says, "The path of the righteous gets brighter and brighter and brighter." If you're going to start experiencing these new victories, you must do your part and start thinking the way God thinks. Think big! Think expansive! Think increase! Start expecting the unexpected!


A Prayer for Today


God, You created the heavens and the earth and breathed life into the universe—Your plans for me are big! There is nothing I have accomplished that is as great as what you have in store for me. I believe there are great things to come. I believe in You. In Jesus' Name – Amen.


Thank you. God bless.
Lots of love and prayers to all.